Rachel Lepkowski ’09 (industrial design)

Career path: Lepkowski worked for packaging companies in Buffalo and Texas before moving to the Bay Area. In her current job, she
works on projects for companies in the food and beverage, health and beauty, medical and technology industries. Everett, which has won
awards for its environmentally friendly innovations, has developed packaging for Williams-Sonoma, Monterey Mushroom, AMD and others.

“I love it. It’s an awesome field to be in.”

On the Bay Area: Lepkowski has wanted to live there since high school. While on vacation visiting friends in the area, she lined up
an interview and got the job.

“People are wonderful. The weather is great. We’re near the ocean. There’s always something to do.”

“I’m going to stay here a while.”

Remembering RIT: “I wanted to go to RIT since I was little.” She changed her major from industrial engineering to industrial
design with a minor in packaging design. The combination of design, math and technology “was more the way my brain works.”

“The way I learned to think about things at RIT put me in the right frame of mind to be successful. I have a different way of
approaching things—design, creative and technical—that gives me a good leg up.”